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fruits of the Jpirit 



Fruits of the Spirit 



By 
Mrs. Theodore Presser 



PRESS OF 

HARPER PRINTING COMPANY 

1012-20 CHANCELLOR STREET 
PHILADELPHIA 



"BJ/5?/ 
7P-7 4 



Copyright 1922 by 
MRS. THEODORE PRESSER 

Philadelphia 



1922 



>O.A67736« 

O 1 



Dedicated to all Seekers of Truth 



LOVE, THE PERFECT FRUIT OF 
THE SPIRIT 

IN the midst of the paradise of God is the 
tree of life, and of the rich abundance of 
its imperishable fruits that grow and ripen 
to their full perfection, the one perfect and life- 
giving, is love. 

Drummond defines love as the greatest thing 
in the world, and we may add that it is like- 
wise the greatest healing force in the world. 
Love has never failed to meet every demand 
of the human heart. One may use the divine 
principle of love to ameliorate every sorrow, 
every lack, every infirmity, and every harsh 
condition that afflicts humanity. By under- 
standing and using the subtle and illimitable 
influence of love, one may heal the world of its 
wounds, and, with its mantle of heavenly com- 
passion, cover all mistakes, all ignorance, and 
all inharmony of the race. 



6 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

With outstretched wings, love searches the 
waste places of life, the arid spots of the human 
heart, and by the magic of its touch, transforms 
the world and redeems humanity. 

Love is God, eternal, changeless, limitless, 
stretching beyond all vision, on into infinitude, 
of which we know not. 

All-embracing, all-consoling, the angel of 
love goes forth on its divinely appointed mis- 
sion: the redemption of the world. Love ful- 
fills the law of its own spirit, consummates its 
perfect work, and reveals the Christ within the 
soul of man. 

Love is ever seeking an inlet into the soul of 
humanity, and when not obstructed by man's 
perversity and discordant thinking, the resistless 
current of God's eternal, changeless love flows 
onw r ard, carrying before it, into the great ocean 
of forgetfulness, every appearance of ugliness 
which disturbs the harmony of life. 

"Love . . . beareth all things, believeth all 
things, hopeth all things, endureth all things." 
It is the perfect fruit of Spirit for the healing of 



LOVE, THE PERFECT FRUIT 7 

the nations, binding up the wounds of human- 
ity, and bringing peace and prosperity to the 
world; it is the very heartbeat of the world, 
the pulse of the universe ; it is that current direct 
from the great omnipresent Life with which hu- 
manity must be charged, if it would do the 
work of Jesus Christ. 

Are you in trouble? Are you sick and 
afraid? Does life press heavily upon you? 
Do you need strength to meet with courage the 
problems that confront you? Then lift your 
hands and pray to Him who leads the way. 
You need not fear, for the imperishable love of 
God infolds you. And He has said, "Before 
they call, I will answer; and while they are yet 
speaking, I will hear." 

Approach the throne of grace boldly, not in 
the old way, with grovelings and beseechings, 
but with the prayer of understanding faith, 
affirming that the help of which you stand in 
need, is yours already. 

Ask, never doubting. Do more : Claim your 
birthright as a child of the living God, and 



8 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

know that in the invisible substance, in which 
we live and move and have our being, is every 
good thing which the heart of man can desire, 
and which by faith he can draw into visible 
manifestation. 

"What is seen hath not been made out of 
things which appear." "According to your 
faith be it done unto you." 

Truth is unalterable, changeless, the same 
yesterday, today, and forever. But when we 
fail to recognize Truth, or refuse to accept it, 
or do not apply it practically in our daily lives, 
we cannot expect to receive its blessings and 
benefits. 

The laws of God are immutable, but they 
are beneficent; they are divinely good, and 
when we live in conformity with them, they are 
the very foundation stones on which we build 
our house of happiness. 

To live in conformity with God's law, is to 
find health and strength; it is the way of peace 
and of poise; it is the way of success and at- 
tainment. Abiding in the law, no evil can be- 



LOVE, THE PERFECT FRUIT 9 

fall us; we need no healing, for we are every 
whit whole. 

But if we sell our birthright ; if we disregard 
or treat with contempt the beneficent laws of 
God; if we turn our backs on the Father's 
house, and, like the prodigal son, wander into a 
far country, of what avail to us are the warmth 
and shelter, the peace and the plenty that abide 
within that house? "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, 
, . . . . how often would I have gathered 
thy children together, even as a hen gathereth 
her chickens under her wings, and ye would 
not!" 

In the days when we have no pleasure, when 
we are tired of the husks of life, then weary, 
homesick, and with faltering footsteps, we re- 
trace our way home to the Fathers house. 

Over the road of bitter experience, but with 
new understanding and knowledge gained, we 
press toward the mark of our high calling, and, 
with each step, we grow stronger and bolder ; 
we no longer falter or hesitate, but we look 
within for our illumination; in our awakened 



10 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

consciousness, we realize that home is here, in 
the Divine Omnipresence in which we live. 

Health is here; joy is here; peace and love 
are here. These are the fruits of Spirit, the 
gifts of God. 

Looking unto God, no evil can befall us; 
looking unto him, no hurt can come nigh unto 
us; looking unto him, we are healed of our in- 
firmities, in the transcendent name of our Lord 
Jesus Christ. 

There is naught to make you fear, naught to 
make you tremble or despair. God is in the 
midst of you, child of infinite, immortal Spirit. 

Before Abraham was, you were; from the 
bosom of the Father you came; the breath of 
Almighty God created you a living soul. 

Beloved, now are we the sons of God, heirs 
of the kingdom of infinite, changeless love, 
"joint-heirs with Christ." The same power that 
was in Jesus Christ flows through you and 
through me today, and will manifest in every 
beautiful and imperishable attribute of Spirit, if 
we do not pervert or turn aside its current. 



LOVE, THE PERFECT FRUIT 11 

Think good thoughts, God thoughts ; live the 
Christ life; give of yourself in love and in 
service to those children of God who need you, 
and claim what belongs to you by divine in- 
heritance — ask what you will of the Father, be- 
lieving you will receive. 

"I and the Father are one." "Thou, Father, 
art in me, and I in thee." In the realization of 
our at-one-ment with God, in our unity with 
good, everywhere present, comes our demon- 
stration of health, prosperity, peace, and har- 
mony. 

If we are one with God, the Good, we can- 
not harbor discord and inharmony, we cannot 
know or see so-called evil. If we are filled 
with good, we are good — we cannot be any- 
thing else. In the omnipresence of good, there 
is no room for evil. 

In the realization of our at-one-ment with 
infinite Good, every false appearance, every 
mental picture in a mind out of harmony with 
itself, must be obliterated and banished into 
nothingness. The more nearly perfect our 



12 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

realization, the more nearly perfect will be our 
healing of all the things that take from us the 
blessing, the joy, and the sweetness of life. 

Teach me Thy statutes, O God, that I may 
follow Thy footsteps and wax strong in spirit. 

Illumine me, that I may know Thee as Thou 
art, and see Thee in all created things. 

Give me an understanding mind, and the soul 
of faith, and I may realize Thee as the eternal 
Principle of being, from whom flows all life. 
And give me, O Lord, I pray Thee, a heart of 
love, that I may look unto Thee, my Father- 
Mother God, with the confiding trust and the 
simple faith of a little child, who rests in sweet 
contentment within the encircling arms of Love. 



"Love, the Perfect Truth of the Spirit" is reprinted, by 
permission, from Weekly Unity. 



"WHAT ALL THE WORLD'S 
A-SEEKING" 

HOW can I make life yield to me of its 
richest and best? How can I know last- 
ing peace and joy, and find that supreme 
gift of life that "all the world's a-seeking," to 
which humanity thinks it has a right and is 
thoroughly agreed, that the world owes them, 
and will one day repay, with compound 
interest? 

These are questions that have been asked 
since the beginning of time, and will continue to 
be until the "race has run its course." 

When and how shall I find that summum 
bonum of life, that supreme gift of Happiness, 
the untiring pursuit of which shows that "our 
faith is strong, and our heart is always young." 

The world generally considers the happy 
man as happy because he is healthy, fortunate, 
and bountifully supplied with material goods. 



14 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

But this is not true; he is happy, healthy, and 
fortunate, not because of his possessions, but for 
the reason that he has taken cognizance of cer- 
tain spiritual laws, and obeyed them. 

He understands that it is contrary to the law 
to get "something for nothing;" to expect it is 
disintegrating in its effects — it closes the chan- 
nel of Divine Supply, and leads to disease, lack 
and disappointment. 

It is altogether a wrong conception of the 
law, if we think that the world owes us "one jot 
or one tittle," unless from the largeness of a 
generous, cheerful spirit we contribute some- 
thing of value, something that "rings true." 

Giving and receiving, is the spiritual law of 
equilibrium, and is the direct route that leads to 
health, prosperity, joy and tranquility, and is 
the only basis on which to found our 
happiness. 

The world is a mirror in which we see the 
reflection of ourselves. Our contributions are 
mercilessly show r n up, and return to us in like 
coin. We alone are responsible for our failure, 



"WHAT THE WORLD'S A-SEEKING" 15 

our success, or our reward — to reap the good 
grain we must sow the good seed. 

The road to happiness that we pursue so 
eagerly and sacrifice so much to find, is not a 
material thing at all. It is not ambition, money, 
pleasure or fame— it is not purchasable at any 
price, for it does not lie in the externals of life, 
its kingdom is within not without. 

Some of the most unhappy people in the 
world are those who apparently have the most ; 
some of the happiest, those who have the least. 
After all, it is not what we have on the outside, 
but what we have on the inside that makes the 
contented mind of happiness. 

The riches of the world take flight, the riches 
of the spirit increase in value and bring forth 
manifold gifts of different lustre. We, who are 
seeking that abiding peace and happiness ever 
growing deeper and richer with the passing 
years, know that there is no such thing as find- 
ing true and lasting happiness by searching for 
it directly. It is in love, in kindness, and by 



16 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

service, and in the happiness we give to others 
that we find it for ourselves. 

A heart of goodness and mercy, answering 
the appeal for help from the heart of another, 
a face all bright with kindly happy thoughts, 
blesses a street, a home, an entire community, 
so contagious is its spirit. A joyous, happy spirit 
distributes sunshine wherever it goes, and that 
is what humanity needs, for human virtues un- 
fold and grow in the sunshine just as the flowers 
do in God's out-of-doors. 

A capacity for happiness is a virtue. If 
we feel ourselves lacking in it, we should culti- 
vate it by occasionally forgetting one's self and 
remembering some one else. 

To make others happy is one of the highest 
duties and greatest privileges, and the surest 
way of being happy one's self. 

Speaking of happiness, Joseph Jefferson once 
said, "My boys sometimes get discouraged and 
I say to them: Go out and do something for 
somebody and forget yourself. Go out and 
buy something for anybody, if it is only a pair 



"WHAT THE WORLD'S A-SEEKING" 1 7 

of woolen stockings for a poor old woman; it 
will take you away from yourself and make 
you happy." 

Our happiness to a large extent is in our own 
hands. It is the product of our minds. Make 
of your mind "a nest of pleasant thoughts" and 
in time of dearth draw upon them. It will 
chase away the gloom and bring gladness to 
your day. Make up your mind to be happy, 
and you will be. "I have noticed," said Abra- 
ham Lincoln, "that a man is usually as happy 
as he has a mind to be." 

The road to happiness lies not through the 
trackless forest. You may find it in the most 
ordinary streets, and humblest occupation — 
you may see it from your window if you will 
raise the blinds. It stands on the very thresh- 
old of your door, but how often have you 
stupidly shut the door in its face and forbidden 
it to enter. 

Because of our perversity and foolishness, 
we turn our backs on the door where happiness 



18 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

awaits us, and go out in our alleyways and look 
at the ash cans instead of the blue sky. 

And yet, the happiness that might be ours if 
we would only remove those ugly obstacles of 
prejudice and criticism, that useless corroding 
fear, that distressing worry and anxiety eating 
into the peace of our lives! If we would be 
content to live just one day at a time, and build 
around it a little fence of trust, we would be 
satisfied to leave tomorrow to the watchful care 
of God. 

Happiness is the most priceless boon of life. 
It is made up of countless little things, and the 
consideration of these little things, and the liv- 
ing them day by day, and hour by hour, remem- 
bering to be thoughtful, to be courteous, to say 
the kindest thing in the kindest way, to know 
that there is a beautiful way of saying and 
doing almost anything, and following that 
beautiful way in our intercourse with our fellow 
beings, make the sum total of those countless 
little things that constitute the peace and happi- 
ness which " all the world's a-seeking." 



"WHAT THE WORLD'S A-SEEKING" 19 

And what an accommodating thing happi- 
ness is ! It has no choice of selection. It comes 
as readily to the cottage as the palace. 
It makes no distinction between the rich 
and the poor. It makes its home with equal 
sweetness and blessing to all who open the door 
of their hearts and invite its entrance. 

For it is in the heart that happiness dwells. 
It is in the consciousness that the joy and satis- 
faction of life abides with the spirit that is in 
tune with the things of God. 

To think well of our fellow man, to see 
the good of humanity, to rejoice in the beauty 
of the world, to hear God's whisper in the wind, 
to sense His presence in the fragrance of the 
flower, to be conscious of His divinity in the 
kindly acts of others — to give thanks for our 
work as well as our play — this is the joy and 
the peace that abide in the heart forever. 

It is the secret of happiness that every man 
carries within his own soul, and he may live it 
every hour and every day of his life. 



THE CONQUERING PEACE 

THE universal longing of humanity today, 
is for peace, it is what the world needs 
most of all. 

Peace, not for individual prosperity, nor for 
the selfish advancement of one's own particular 
spot of earth, but from a higher, more altruistic 
motive — for the universal good and happiness 
of mankind. 

Peace amongst all nations, all races, in inter- 
national affairs, in personal business relations, 
in the home, in family life, peace individually, 
personally. This is "the consummation devout- 
ly to be wished," which every true soul is 
seeking. 

Every human being has his or her orbit of 
influence, around which the daily life of his or 
her corner of the world revolves, and every 
thinking human being has within him that innate 
longing for peace, for which he is willing to 
sacrifice much, and to work for. 



THE CONQUERING PEACE 21 

For peace is not the passive acceptance of 
those ills, which from ignorance of the law, 
we have brought upon ourselves and upon 
humanity. 

Neither is it "a little sleep, a little folding 
of the hands." It is a truism, generally ac- 
cepted by even the most average intelligence, 
that anything worth having is worth working 
for, and like every desirable condition in the 
world, it is only by the nobility of work that a 
successful issue is brought to pass. 

Work is a divine tool, capable of fine ac- 
complishment; it has chiseled many a splendid 
monument to the efficiency and untiring energy 
of mankind; in its wake is an endless train of 
beneficence, beauty and achievement. In the 
category of its blessings, there is nothing more 
beautiful or more blessed than peace. 

There is a subtle power in the very word 
- — peace — a deep psychology, and it brings 
a sense of tranquility, repose, and quiet 
restfulness. 

Its repetition stills the fitful fever of unful- 



22 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

filled desires, soothes the jarring nerves, and 
after long wakefulness, sleep falls upon the 
tired mind, and the weary body relaxes its ten- 
sion. "When thou liest down thou shalt not 
be afraid, yea, thou shalt lie down in peace, 
and thy sleep shall be sweet." 

"Blessed are the peacemakers." To be 
blessed as a peacemaker, we must first be at 
peace with the self, with God, and the world. 
We cannot give to another what we do not 
ourselves possess. We cannot become God's 
messenger of love and peace, until we feel the 
joy and tranquility within our own souls. 

We are the reflectors of the peace of God, 
the expressions of His love. In this realization 
we become radiating centers of that Jesus Christ 
peace which passeth understanding, and over- 
cometh the world. 

The word of the Spirit does not say that 
humanity can escape the trials and the tests that 
life brings to us, as the years come and go, but 
when they do come, when we are called to pass 
through the fiery furnace, when we go through 



THE CONQUERING PEACE 23 

the deep waters — "I will be with thee, thy 
troubles to bless." My peace will be thy 
peace, if thou standest true. 

"My peace I leave with you, my peace I 
will give unto you," if thou wilt overcome the 
world with me. 

Thy troubles which are thy tests, I will bless 
unto thee, and thou will arise and go thy way 
in peace and quietness. 

We must not go part of the way, we must 
go all the way with Christ, if we would con- 
quer, and know His peace. 

The Jesus Christ peace comes when the self 
is conquered; it is overcoming — the overcom- 
ing of discord and inharmony, standing firm 
against temptation. The conquering of fear, 
anxiety and worry — rising above the belief of 
evil, of ascending the heights above the clouds 
of pain and disappointment. 

Master of your thought, ruler of the inner 
kingdom of the self — this is your work and 
mine — but "let not your heart be troubled" — 
God works with us; — 



24 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

And after the "day is done" the struggle, 
nobly breasted, after the battle honorably won 
— Peace. 

The peace of God which descends upon the 
spirit of him who has purged his soul of all 
hatred, malice and uncharitableness, and with 
a heart of love, has forgiven the frailties of his 
brother as he would have his own forgiven. 

The tranquility and sweet repose, that calm 
serenity and beautiful poise, which cannot be 
disturbed, that peace of the spirit, which no 
adverse condition, or force of circumstance, can 
rob you of, no human personality take from you. 

The fearlessness of the soul whose mind is 
stayed on God, has won that which is beyond 
all price, all estimate. 

It has passed through the thick of the battle, 
and because it has trusted in the Lord of Hosts 
it has emerged unscathed through the ordeal, 
and victorious, it has xvon its peace. 

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose 
mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusted in 
Thee." 



JUST BE KIND 

GOD is enwrapped in kindnesses. His 
voice is speaking through every deed of 
love and every word of kindness. 

And thank God, there is more kindness in 
people's hearts than there is unkindness, more 
good in the world than there is evil, and in 
spite of all we read and hear the world is 
growing better all the time because as some- 
body says, "There are so many people in it 
who love to help." 

Lincoln gave us a fine summary of life when 
he said, "After all, the one meaning of life is 
to be kind." 

Just simple human kindness that gives a silver 
lining to every cloud, that puts the sunshine into 
human hearts, that radiates and warms the 
bosom of humanity. 

Just simple human kindness, nourishing and 
invigorating the best elements in human nature, 



26 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

the most beneficent and the greatest civilizer of 
life. It makes beautiful the most rugged paths, 
softens the most trying ordeals, lifts humanity 
to the highest plane, and makes the whole 
world akin. 

And there is nothing bigger or finer or more 
blessed than just this simple human kindness, 
and there is nothing that the world needs more 
— and believe me, there is no debtor so superb-* 
ly honorable or so generous, for it is the very 
heart of love itself. 

Life is sometimes very rugged. We encoun- 
ter many pitfalls; there are many stiles to climb 
— will you stop a moment and with kindly 
hand, help the'lame dog over the stile? 

Now of God's creatures dogs and horses do 
not hold a monopoly in falling lame. There is 
the human creature who is also known on oc- 
casions to "fall lame" and sometimes carries a 
limp half his life. 

We cannot shut our eyes to the fact that the 
world is full of human lameness — mental, 



JUST BE KIND 27 

moral and spiritual. It is full of many stiles, 
blocking the road to progress. 

Humanity feels the need today of a greater 
help than it has ever known. Its call is very 
urgent. 

Now what is our part? How will we an- 
swer the call? By force of argument, much 
pressure or persuasion? 

By condemnation and criticism? Will we 
tell our brethren that they are stupid, blind and 
ignorant? 

We cannot lift up anyone by fault finding. 
The world has never yet been helped by con- 
demnation. If we really wish to help the world 
along and make it a better, happier place, there 
is but one infallible rule. To be kind, to love, 
and to help somebody else along with whom 
we come in contact every day, not forgetting 
that the man whom we condemn because he is 
morally lame, is our brother. 

The woman we criticize who limps with such 
effort on the road is our sister. We cannot 



28 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

ignore this fact, for we are all members of one 
family, God our Father. 

The one spirit flows through and sustains all 
life, the one substance fills all humanity — the 
Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of 
Man. 

And Jesus stretched forth His hand and 
said, "Behold my brother, my sister, and my 
mother." 

We must lift our condemnation, cease our 
criticism. It is barely possible that we may 
have a limp of our own. Don't look at the de- 
fect in your neighbor — don't see it, but see only 
this perfect child of God and be kind, £/nJ 
— that is our watchword. 

Tell these children of God to cease looking 
in the objective for some prop to support them 
— they will never find it there; to cease seeking 
help from some god afar off in the heavens. 

Tell them of their own divinity. Tell them 
that help is very near — "closer than breathing 
nearer than hands or feet." "Before they call, 
I will answer." Tell them that God has put 



JUST BE KIND 29 

into their own souls the power to climb any 
height. They have within them the power to 
help themselves. 

And that power comes from the source of all 
life — Almighty God. It is ours to use if we will. 
Of our own volition we may stand upright on 
our feet and walk through life victorious. 

The only crutch that a man needs in this 
world is Faith. 

Faith in God; faith in himself; faith in 
humanity; faith in our common everyday life, 
that we keep it clean and wholesome ; and faith 
in our divinely given powers, that we use them 
for the highest good. 

Our greatest privilege in this world is to be 
a helper, and the way to be a helper is to serve 
— and the greatest service we can do for a man 
is to help him to help himself. 

This is the day of our opportunity to stretch 
forth our hand in the warm clasp of fellow- 
ship — it is our chance for service and there is 
nothing in all life's experiences greater or holier 
than service. 



30 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

To serve is to be a servant, and unless we 
wish to be drones in the world's work we must 
account ourselves as servants. 

Was not our great exemplar, Jesus the Christ, 
the greatest servant of all? Did He not serve 
humanity even to the cross and beyond when 
He opened the Kingdom of Heaven to all be- 
lievers? And is it not for His followers to 
carry out His spirit in all their works? 

So be kind, one to the other, serving one 
another, loving one another. This is the way 
to bring the kingdom of good into men's hearts. 

This is the way to bind up the wounds of the 
broken hearted, to heal the sick, the lame, and 
the halt. This is the way to help humanity 
over the stiles of life. 

Life is a training school, and our training be- 
gins as soon as we are able to take cognizance 
of people and things. The forming of habits 
begins in these first impressionable years, and 
these habits crystalize in our consciousness, 
shaping our lives, influencing our destiny, our 
own happiness, and the happiness of others. 



JUST BE KIND 31 

Well would it be for our future if we were 
taught to form the habit of kindness in our early 
years. It would be a saving grace, but if, 
unfortunately, this has been neglected, we must 
bear in mind that it is never too late to begin to 
be kind; never too late to apply the law of 
loving kindness in our relations to our fellows. 

Never too late to cast aside the old habit that 
is non-constructive and without benefit to our- 
selves and others, and form a new habit that 
will construct and benefit both ourselves and 
those with whom we come in contact. 

We can do anything we really wish to, and 
there is no use hanging on to an old worn gar- 
ment when we can be clothed anew. 

We can reform our habits — or rather, we 
can form a brand new set of habits and begin 
to practice that kindly spirit of love and charity 
covering a multitude of sins, sweetening life, 
and making it worth the living. 

Assume the victorious attitude — "I can and 
I will" and remember that it is just as easy and 
easier to form a good habit than a bad one 



32 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

when we remember "whence cometh our help." 
In spite of what the pessimist says, it is not 
a bad world. The heart of it is divinely good, 
and if wisely directed, will unfold into surpass- 
ing beauty. So be of good courage, "Deity is 
on your side." God and you are a majority. 

Oh, kindness, so rich in blessedness, so 
prodigal in returns, so infallibly remembered, 
paying itself back a hundred fold! 

Flowing from the heart of love, blessing 
humanity with its tender ministry, immortal in 
its influence, stretching from pole to pole, en- 
circling the earth with its heavenly beauty. 

Oh, thank God, all ye who see it, and all 
ye who feel it, for whenever it touches a human 
heart, that one looks up to God. 

I don't believe there is anyone who intends 
or starts out to be actively unkind. It is oftener 
the kindnesses we leave undone than the un- 
kindnesses we are guilty of. It is more often 
neglect which comes from lack of thought or 
perhaps indifference, or maybe it is that we are 



JUST BE KIND 33 

so filled with the thought of self that we have 
not time to spare to others. 

And then again we procrastinate. "I am 
busy today, tomorrow will do as well,' 5 and 
sometimes, you see, tomorrow never comes. 

Today is the day of our golden opportunity. 
Let us not neglect it, nor pass it by. Let us 
not be so busy today that we forget to be kind. 

If a kind thought comes to you, act upon it 
quickly. Don't wait or put it off. If you hear 
anything good of your neighbor, take the 
trouble to hunt him up and tell him about it. 

It may be just the word he needs — just the 
encouragement to spur him on the road of high 
endeavor. Withhold nothing that will cheer 
him on the way — send your flowers today; do 
not wait to send them with your note of 
condolence. "Therefore, any good thing 
that I can say, or any kindness that I can show 
to any human being, let me do it now, let me 
not defer it or neglect it, for I shall not pass this 
way again." 

Blessed as it is to give, also is it blessed to 



34 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

receive. Therefore, never refuse a kindness 
that comes from the heart of another, but re- 
ceive it into your own and be grateful for it, and 
when it has completed its appointed work of 
love, pass it on to another's needs. 

"The greatest thing," says someone, "that a 
man can do for his Heavenly Father, is to be 
kind to some of His other children." 

Love, sympathy, kindness, and understand- 
ing, make the foundation of civilized life. They 
are the attributes which render life truly human 
and beautiful. 

They are the good seed which, planted deep 
in the soil of the human heart, will not fail to 
germinate, take root and flower in bounteous 
perfection, each in its own time — with its own 
beauty and fragrance — individualized expres- 
sions of the one life, each fulfilling its appointed 
mission of joy and sweetness according to the 
will of its Creator. 

Each star in its orbit, though it differeth in 
glory, is but the reflection of the One Glory, 
held by the One Omnipotent Hand. 



JUST BE KIND 35 

Each soul is the individualized expression of 
the One "Oversoul," the One Infinite Life and 
Substance, held together in the bond of God 
from "everlasting to everlasting." 

In the last analysis of kindness, it is really 
"love in action." "It is to love the unlovely, to 
give a hand to the unattractive, to speak to the 
uncongenial." 

To believe in our brothers, to vision the 
Christ underneath the debris of error and 
ignorance; to look beyond the appearance and 
see the wonder and beauty of humanity ; — 

To know that humanity is good and divinely 
lovable, because God made it — and some day, 
when our eyes are opened and we have ceased 
to sense error, sickness, and sin as realities of 
life;— 

When we have awakened to the conscious- 
ness of our own divine powers, as yet so little 
realized; when we have visioned the Christ in 
the midst of us; when we have learned to look 
up and not down; — 

Then will we see ourselves and all humanity 



36 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

clad in the white robes of our perfection which 
we had with Him before the world was — and 
now Father, glorify Thy Son, that Thy Son 
may also glorify Thee. 

Just to be kind, to be loving, to fill the lives 
of those around us with sweetness, with joy, 
"with approving words of cheer," while their 
mortal ears can hear them and their human 
hearts be thrilled by them. 

"And somewhere along the path of life, the 
kindness that we have shown will come back to 
us — every deed of love goes on forever, and in 
its journeyings to and fro will sometimes pause 
at the gates of our lives and burn incense upon 
our altars." 

Just to be kind, that someone may be the 
happier for our presence; that someone may re- 
joice and be glad that we have lived, and bless 
our name when we are gone. 

To love and to serve, that a life may be 
lifted, a soul redeemed, and a heart made glad; 
and as someone writes, "I love to feel that when 
one makes glad the heart of any man, woman, 



JUST BE KIND 37 

or child, he makes glad the heart of God, and 
somehow I feel that this is true." 

Lord, implant in our hearts this Thy law of 
loving kindness — teach us to bestow it upon 
the rich and the poor alike, that it may enrich 
the earth, bringing unto Thee others of Thy 
children, that Thy name may be glorified for- 
ever and ever. 



THE STRENGTH OF CHEER- 
FULNESS 

CARLYLE has said "that the strength of 
cheerfulness is wondrous, altogether 
past calculations are its powers of en- 
durance, and all efforts to be permanently use- 
ful must be uniformly joyous." 

Who does not enjoy the companionship of a 
uniformly cheerful spirit, and who does not feel 
a happy uplift from association with the 
optimist? 

The optimist is the man who carries sun- 
shine in his heart in such sufficient quantity that 
he has enough to spare for everyone he meets. 

His is the contented spirit, not looking for 
trouble, but for joy; not expecting evil from 
his fellow beings, but good. He looks for the 
silver lining of life, no matter the hue of the 
skies. Behind the clouds is the sun, still shin- 
ing. If it rains to-day, it will clear to-morrow. 



STRENGTH OF CHEERFULNESS 39 

The clouds will lift and the sun will shine with 
a steadier radiance and more grateful will be its 
warmth for the cold winds of yesterday. Truly, 
Carlyle is right, the strength of cheerfulness is 
wondrous. 

Hour by hour and day by day the optimist 
with a superior w r isdom which comes from 
spiritual insight, seeing the good of humanity 
and the beauty of the world, is creating his own 
heaven, and when we make heaven for our- 
selves, we help to make it for others. 

The pessimist, undoubtedly thinking he is 
right, is constantly cheering us up by reminding 
us what poor earthworms we are, and what a 
weak-kneed thing human nature is at best. The 
world is all wrong, and everything in life, 
ourselves included, is on the high road to 
destruction. 

Thus does the pessimist, by his lack of wis- 
dom and spiritual insight, draw around himself 
a wall of limitation, making for himself his own 
hell, and he who makes hell for himself is very 
apt to make it for someone else. 



40 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

The cheerful man is perpetually radiating an 
influence that wakes up the best in others and 
brings it forth. He acts upon those with whom 
he contact as the summer sun upon the forests 
and the fields. They feel the warmth of his 
presence, and they are stronger, braver, hap- 
pier, and they go on their way rejoicing that, 
after all, life is not so poor a thing; humanity 
is capable of much goodness; the world is all 
right, and so they shoulder their responsibili- 
ties with renewed courage, and all because 
they have contacted the cheerful personality of 
a sunny temper, which is a talisman more power- 
ful than wealth, more precious than rubies. 

The reason that we see so many gloomy, sour 
faces as we go along the street is because people 
do not understand, they do not know that the 
expression and bearing of a man depends upon 
what he carries within his own soul. It leaves 
its mark upon face and form. If you consent 
to be disagreeable within yourself; if you let 
your disposition get beyond your own control, 
it will brand you with its mark. 



STRENGTH OF CHEERFULNESS 41 

But let us stop and take account of those 
fresh and genial faces, those kind and gentle 
faces, sparkling with the radiance of a bright 
and cheerful spirit. Spirits "all sunshine, grace- 
ful from very gladness, beautiful because 
bright." 

These are those rare and lovely souls, that as 
they walk their way of life, preach sermons that 
sink deep in the human heart and radiate an 
imperishable influence upon the lives of others. 

Have you ever thought of the contagion of 
cheerfulness? We have heard so much of the 
contagion of disease and the host of ugly things, 
but what about catching the good and happy 
things of life? We don't wish to be immune 
from these desirable things — health is con- 
tagious; haven't we been in the presence of the 
wholesome, healthy, cheerful-minded person 
and felt his influence upon our own minds and 
bodies; have we not felt the blood coursing in 
our veins with a stronger, more vital current? 

Joy is contagious. Who has not felt it in 
that glow of the heart, that uplift of the spirit? 



42 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

The contagions of life are not all evil. They 
are blessings beyond all conception, beyond all 
telling. Thank God for them, and pass on the 
spiritual contagion to make more blessed the 
lives of others. 

As a life power, cheerfulness is irresistible. 
It is a combination of wonderful things. It 
smiles upon the burdens of life, and they cease 
to be burdens. Its smile is a reassurance of bet- 
ter things. Its happy laughter cheers the 
atmosphere, like the sun on a foggy day. 

It is joy, for it rejoices in the Lord and the 
beauty of created things. It is hope, for it 
knows that back of every appearance there is 
God Himself. It is faith, for with uplifted eyes 
it sees the glory of the Christ. It is love, for it 
believes in service, and gives without question, 
of its own cheerful spirit to minister to others. 

I read sometime ago an article on the cheer- 
fulness of our soldiers during the late war, so 
wonderful in the face of their sufferings. It said 
that "cheerfulness was the best antidote for fear 
and depression." As one man expressed it, 



STRENGTH OF CHEERFULNESS 43 

"You've absolutely got to be cheerful or you'd 
go under/' 

The responsibilities of life are great — the 
thoughts we hold, the emotions expressed by 
word or deed, the very life we live, are but a 
signpost on the road of life, guiding men and 
women for good or ill. Therefore, who can 
say "My life is my own affair; I will live it as 
I choose; of what use is it to others?" 

"If we only knew the good we could do, 
By speaking each day a kind word or two. 

"If we only knew how a merry smile 
Goes traveling on, mile after mile. 

"If we only knew how honest praise 
Can lighten a heart for days and days, 

"If we only knew the good we could do, 
With a little pains, myself and you, 

"Would we ever say, to make excuse, 
As we often do, 'Oh, what's the use?' ' 

Everything pertaining to good is of value to 
the world. Humanity has need of every con- 



44 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

structive thought. If we would eliminate from 
our daily life such non-constructive thoughts as 
worry, anxiety, and fear, and those numberless 
pin-pricking emotions, we w r ould help the world 
along with tremendous power and humanity 
would he healthy, happy, and wise. Worry is 
the greatest joy-killer and health destroyer of 
all the human emotions, for it really has its 
origin in fear, which is the root of all the evil 
which humanity suffers from. Worry has never 
yet solved the problem, never yet reached a 
single wise decision, for from its very nature it 
creates such an atmosphere of unhappiness and 
morbid imaginings, that if long dwelt upon, 
undermine the health, and befogging the 
mental faculties prevent the very things w r e are 
struggling to attain. 

So cultivate the cheerful habit — you can if 
you will. God always works with you. Don't 
worry over the things that may happen, but 
haven't, and perhaps never will. 

I heard the other day of a prominent busi- 
ness man saying that his father had worried over 



STRENGTH OF CHEERFULNESS 45 

a misfortune twenty years that never happened. 
His constitution stood it, but his temper and his 
disposition didn't, and he wasn't easy to live 
with. 

I believe it was Lowell who said, "Be of 
good cheer, remembering that the misfortunes 
hardest to bear are those that never come." 

A cheerful countenance and a sunny smile 
lighten many a darkened life; ease many a 
burden from tired shoulders, substitute hope 
for despair and bring home to the Christ many 
a repentant soul. It is a beautiful sermon with- 
out words, and he who runs may read. 

One cheerful, bright and contented spirit in 
a household will uplift the tone of all the rest. 
So what we wish to do is to cultivate a merry 
heart. It is our bounden duty to gather in all 
the sunshine and happiness that we can hold, 
and the more we gather in, the greater grows 
our capacity, and the more we hold, the more 
we will have to distribute to others. 

It is in the sunshine that we grow and ex- 
pand in beauty and sweetness, like the plants in 



46 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

God's great out-doors. It is in the strength 
of cheerfulness that we render unto others that 
which we have received from the God of all 
Love and Beauty and Wisdom. 

With praise and thanksgiving let us count 
our blessings, and when a sorrowful thought 
assails us, let us counteract it, with our latest 
blessing. 

We will find some dear new gift from the 
Father's hand to add to the long list of His 
mercy and goodness. Should we fail to find it 
to-day, despair not — we will find it to-morrow. 
The failure is in ourselves. Do not blame God, 
for He giveth to all who are willing to receive. 

"He openeth His hand and satisfieth the de- 
sire of every living creature." 



SERENITY 

ONE of the secrets of a happy life is 
serenity of mind. A serene mind that 
goes tranquilly on its way, trusting God, 
loving humanity, giving itself in service regard- 
less of either praise or blame. 

For over its own spirit it keeps the "High 
Watch." It neither hastens nor forces the con- 
summation of events, it awaits with the calm- 
ness of patience, knowing that in "quietness and 
confidence" lie strength. 

Life moves quickly, event follows event, in 
bewildering succession. The pressure of the 
moment seems almost more than we can bear, 
and if in a sudden storm, a sudden emergency, 
we should lose temporarily our poise, our confi- 
dent composure, which through weeks, and 
months, and years, perhaps, we have struggled 
and ploughed deep in bitter experience to 
attain ; — 



48 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

Be not discouraged, nor dismayed. There is 
a force within us greater than any outer force 
of circumstances, stronger than any force of the 
world, a power w r orking in and through us, for 
our good, that nothing can overcome. 

Give up your mortal will to the power of the 
spirit within you, surrender yourself to the 
Christ, for before there is serenity there must 
be surrender. 

Then will you arise with a new strength — the 
serenity of your soul will be re-born, and no 
doubt, nor travail nor despair can take from 
you this beautiful flower of your soul. 

Oh, life so beautiful, so perfect, as it comes 
to us from God! How we trample upon it, 
how careless of its treasures! How T we be- 
smirch its fairness and how complex do we 
make it in our arrogance and pride, and alas! 
our ignorance. 

What a precious gift it is, eternal from the 
Father. The greatest trust in the world given 
to our keeping, to make it what we will, — a 
sordid, selfish, avaricious thing, or a transcen- 



SERENITY 49 

dent something, a constructive, beautiful thing 
of service and of love, and when we return this 
gift so wondrous to Him who gave it, if we 
have done aught, however slight, to illumine 
the corner of the world wherein we have been 
placed, any deed of tender kindness to uplift 
another life, then indeed, we may not be 
ashamed, for we have done it unto Him. "For 
as ye have done it unto the least of these, my 
brethren, ye have done it unto Me." 

I wonder why we so often choose the hard 
and toilsome road of struggle, and sometimes 
crucifying experience to reach the heights for 
which our souls are yearning? 

Is it that we will not spare the moments from 
the busy hours to sit still and wait upon the 
Lord? But ever must we force our way, we 
must coerce the Spirit, not knowing in our 
ignorance that we cannot with our mortal will 
force the working of Infinite Spirit. It must 
have its own immortal freedom and proceed in 
its own divine order, and we can neither stay 
nor hasten its coming. 



50 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

Surely, every thinking man and woman de- 
sires that serene composure, that inner poise so 
indicative of a well-balanced character, that 
neither the disappointments nor the trying exper- 
iences that come to every life can disturb, nor 
cause to be lost beyond recall. 

And there is a way, a way of keeping one's 
poise, one's serenity, which will remain un- 
shaken, come what may. 

A way of avoiding many of our perplexities, 
many of our experiences through which we 
must, or think we must, pass through, before we 
can learn our lesson. 

The way of confidence, the easy, simple way 
of just trusting and resting, letting go our anxious 
fears, holding no disquieting thought for the 
morrow, for "the Father knoweth what we 
have need of." "Be still and know. Trust in 
the Lord and He shall bring it to pass." 

There is no struggle here, neither fear nor 
anxious thought, but a beautiful assurance. 

Look unto Him, trust Him, and He shall 
bring it to pass. Rest in the Lord and fret not 



SERENITY 51 

thyself in any wise. This is the way of attain- 
ment and the easy, simple way to peace and 
poise. 

"Sit still, O Soul, thou at least must not lose 
thy serenity nor thy awareness of the eternal 
presence of God.'* 

This presence is our life, the incoming and 
outgoing of that Breath, by which man became 
a living soul. On this supreme fact is based our 
all of existence. 

A serenity that keeps the "High Watch" 
over its own soul is an asset of the spirit. It is 
a quality of spiritual greatness. And one of the 
highest ideals of daily conduct is to maintain 
that inner poise and serenity, which is based, not 
upon outward observances, but upon the reali- 
zation of that Power and Presence which is 
always with us. 

And though our faith is often tested to the 
utmost and people and things disturb us, and 
we feel that we are misused and misunderstood, 
yet if we have found our center, the center of 
the Christ within us, and know our home in 



52 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

God, the world goes on, people pass and re- 
pass, but they no longer disturb us, for we know 
that we need only turn within to commune with 
the Omnipresent Spirit where help abounds. 

We know that everything we have need of is 
within. We know we have access to all power, 
all wisdom, for does not the Father give to the 
children His own? Is there not a constant flow 
of living waters from the font of all blessings? 

"Prove me now," saith the Lord, "if I will 
not open the window of Heaven and pour you 
out a blessing that there will not be room enough 
to receive it." 

We believe, we know, that there is a well- 
spring of guidance in man, a divinity that will 
guide him in the path of wisdom and power. 

"When thou goest It will lead thee; when 
thou sleepest It will keep thee; when thou wak- 
est It will talk to thee." 

Never are we without this heavenly guidance, 
and if we but trust It and obey It, putting no 
obstacle in Its way, erecting no barrier of the 
personal will, unerringly It will direct our foot- 
steps. 



SERENITY 53 

It will be the Angel going before, to lead 
us out of the wilderness of conflicting opinions 
and fears, on through the valley of the shadow, 
where the fog lies thick and gray, on up the 
mountainside, higher and higher, over stones 
and underbrush, to the broad tablelands of 
faith, where the winds blow sweet and pure 
from the everlasting heights. 

And the soul visions the eternal reality of 
itself, as immortal spirit, one with God, spirit 
of His spirit, life of His life, eternal, changeless. 

It is not in the realm of the intellectual, but 
in the realm of the intuitive, of feeling, of soul, 
that we make our connection with Spirit. 

"Be still, and know." It is in the still and 
silent places of the Soul that we hear the whis- 
per of God. In the spiritual, not the intellectual, 
that we commune with our Father in Heaven. 

Look up and behold Him — He is all that is, 
As Walt Whitman says, "I see something of 
God each hour of the twenty-four, and each 
moment then. In the faces of men and women 
I see God and in my own face in the glass. I 



54 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

find letters from God dropped in the streets and 
every one is signed by God's name." 

If you would be perfectly poised, if you 
would cultivate serenity of mind, that restful 
calmness which is quiet strength, then you must 
cultivate God, then must you rely on the in- 
dwelling presence of spirit, and live the life that 
tends to the development of spiritual perception. 
Demonstrate the God in yourself, that you may 
help your neighbor to demonstrate the God in 
himself. 

It is the practice of the presence of God 
in your own daily life that will draw men to the 
Christ. 

The glory of God in your soul will be mani- 
fest in every thought, in every word and deed of 
your life, in your health, your affairs; it will 
shine in your face, your smile, the torch of your 
hand, the magic of your voice, it will be as a 
lamp unto those who walk in darkness. 

In the soul of every man is his own redeemer, 
the regenerative power that continually re- 
builds, re-creates. 



SERENITY 55 

The destructive thought of yesterday be- 
comes the constructive thought of to-day — the 
sin of the past is redeemed by the good of the 
present. 

The life you thought a failure, with the sav- 
ing grace of the indwelling Redeemer, becomes 
a splendid success. Its follies are forgotten, its 
mistakes are remembered no more. Its selfish- 
ness is consumed by the sacred lire from the 
heart of Almighty God. 

From its ashes the soul arises, the new-born 
Son of the Infinite, saved by the redeeming 
power within the soul of every man. 

He who creates can also re-create. All must 
bear His Image. In His likeness were we 
created, but if in our earthly pilgrimage we lose 
aught of His heavenly likeness, the divine pro- 
cess continually goes on, hour by hour, moment 
by moment, until we emerge from the hand of 
God, into the pure gold of our perfect being. 

As we came from the bosom of our Father, 
Mother, God, with neither stain nor blemish, so 
must we return in His transcendent likeness. 



THE VIRTUE OF PRAISE 

4 4^TOTHING makes a prison of human 
± \| life but a defeated, broken spirit." 
Day by day, hour by hour, 
humanity fashions for itself either a palace or 
a prison, according to the constructive or non- 
constructive quality of its thought. 

A life that otherwise would be victorious, 
rising ever to greater and greater heights on 
the wings of its own undaunted spirit, is ren- 
dered weak and impotent and must perforce 
dwell forever on the lowlands because of its 
discordant, inharmonious thinking. 

A life, yielding its thinking to mortal sense 
thereby becoming the servant, not the master, 
and merging its divine individuality into the 
human personality, loses its birthright of free- 
dom, imprisoning its soul within the narrow 
walls of personal limitation. It is defeating 
and breaking that beautiful gift of God against 
the prison bars of its own construction. 



THE VIRTUE OF PRAISE 57 

You, who would lead the victorious life of 
obstacles overcome and problems met and con- 
quered — you who would know the joy and 
radiance of life in its fullness and dwell in the 
consciousness of peace and poise, must lift your 
thought to its source, from whence it derives its 
sustenance, its sustaining power, becoming a liv- 
ing entity for human betterment. 

We cannot escape the law of attraction. We 
have demonstrated innumerable times in our 
own lives that like attracts like, and that like 
creates like. 

Perhaps no longer than the hour, we may 
remember the unkind thought that was father 
to the unkind word, followed in due course by 
the unkind act ; — 

The discouraged failure thought that we 
sent to some one, who needed, perhaps, oh, so 
sorely, its opposite — encouragement; — 

The attitude of cynicism with which we view 
mankind, the pessimism we assume toward 
human effort, the selfish thought and the care- 
less word that we put into circulation, the 



58 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

criticism and condemnation that we mete to 
others, crippling their efforts and actually de- 
stroying their efficiency; — 

These are the things that imprison our souls, 
and build an impenetrable prison wall of 
limitation. 

And these are the things that we in turn at- 
tract — the law is inexorable. The thoughts 
we hold, the words w r e utter, the life we live, 
our world within, create and attract in like 
kind for good or ill. It is thus that humanity 
creates its own heaven or its hell, for heaven is 
not a place, nor merely a condition, but a state 
of mind, a radiant consciousness, a living of the 
Christ within, and its perfect realization. 

Innumerable hosts of men and women upon 
the earth are living in heaven or hell to-day, 
according to their state of mind, or conscious- 
ness in which they habitually dwell. 

The kingdom of heaven is not here, nor, lo, 
there — the kingdom of heaven is within. 

The law teaches that there is nothing that we 
either do or say that touches another life, that 



THE VIRTUE OF PRAISE 59 

does not react and come home, uplifting, con- 
structing, defeating, or breaking our own spirit. 

If the law reads that we should speak no 
evil of another, it also reads that neither are 
we justified in speaking evil of the self. The 
real self is the immortal child of God, made in 
His image and likeness. The Christ within 
you makes you holy, as likewise the Christ in 
your neighbor and your brethren. 

The Golden Rule that the Founder of Chris- 
tianity laid down for humanity to follow — 
"Do unto others as we would be done by," de- 
mands the controlling of the thought in the 
same degree as the controlling of the word 
and act. 

Think the best of yourself, as well as the best 
of your neighbor. You need the same encour- 
agement that he does. As it is not right think- 
ing to dwell in the thought of your own faults 
and mistakes, neither is it right to dwell, and 
to think, of the faults and mistakes of your 
neighbors. 

In every person that comes near you look 



60 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

for what is good and strong — "Honor that, re- 
joice in it, and as you can try to imitate it and 
your faults will drop off like dead leaves, when 
their time comes." 

"In praise with thanksgiving," let us rejoice 
that there is so much good and beauty in hu- 
manity. Let us rejoice with exceeding joy that 
there is so much to be thankful for, so much to 
praise in the world. 

If your pathway seems dark today, praise 
the sunlit valley just beyond; tomorrow brings 
it nearer. Do not tie the wings of the spirit 
by discouraged, gloomy thought. 

Do not kill your aspirations, nor limit your 
efficiency, or the efficiency of others, by dark 
forebodings of the future. 

The present is ours in which to work, to 
achieve — praise God for it — praise God for the 
good and the beauty and the love that you see, 
and for the opportunities of life that are yours. 

"Keep the high watch" that a discouraged 
thought does not remain for a moment within 



THE VIRTUE OF PRAISE 61 

your mental realm. It is an enemy that if har- 
bored will defeat and break you. 

Finding entrance, it will act as a poison on 
every cell of the body, sending its corroding 
fluid through the circulation, stultifying the 
healthy growth of the body and the beautiful 
unfoldment of the mind. 

I have read somewhere this wonderful creed 
for the discouraged, which I am giving in full, 
because of its beautiful inspiration and uplift: 

"I believe that God created me to be happy, 
to enjoy the blessings of life, and to be useful 
to my fellow beings. 

"I believe that the trials which beset me to- 
day are the tests by which my character is 
strengthened. 

"I believe that my soul is too grand to be 
crushed by defeat— I will rise above it — I will 
be master of circumstances, and surroundings, 
not their slave — I will not yield to discourage- 
ment. 

"I will trample them under foot — make 
them serve as stepping stones to success and 



62 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

turn them into opportunities — my failure to- 
day, will help guide me on to victory to- 
morrow. 

"In all things I will do by best, and leave 
the rest to the infinite. 

"I will not waste my time or mental ener- 
gies by useless worry — I will face the world 
bravely — I will not be a coward. 

"I will assert my God-given birthright, play- 
ing my part nobly, as man or woman — for I 
am immortal, and nothing can overcome me." 

The most effective antidote to discourage- 
ment, the balm of Gilead to the struggling, 
wounded soul, is praise. 

There is no relation, or condition of life, in 
which the true of the earth may not use it, for 
praise is the leaven which works upward and 
raises the hopeless and despairing ones out of 
"the slough of despond." 

Begin in the home, which should be the 
center of radiation — praise your husband. It 
will lighten his burdens, and in the grinding 
work of office or store, will keep his vision 
higher. 



THE VIRTUE OF PRAISE 63 

Praise your children when they do well and 
they will do better. It is the tender ministry of 
your faith and encouragement that they need. 

Praise your servants — they will be the more 
anxious to serve, and happier in their work. 

Praise yourself — perhaps you need it most 
of all, and in your home where you are wife, 
mother and mistress, will be created an atmos- 
phere so sweet, so happy, so restful and full of 
a rich contentment, that all who enter there will 
receive a blessing, and go away with a hope 
and prayer for better things, — for under that 
roof and in that home, God dwells. 

"Pass on the Praise" — give a smile and a 
warm handclasp, a kind word — who knows? 
You may save a soul for God. 

"Pass on the Praise" — don't wait until it is 
too late, and falls on deafened ears, give it now 
in the name of Christ. 

"Praise the Lord, O my soul — go into His 
gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts 
with praise — Be thankful unto Him, and speak 
good of His Name." 



GOOD TEMPER: ITS OVERCOMING 

POWER 

ii^ ""^O him that overcometh will I give to 
J[ eat of the tree of life which is in the 
midst of the Paradise of God." 

Life is a continual overcoming. The prob- 
lem well met to-day — the temptation squarely 
faced and conquered, makes it easier to solve 
the problem of to-morrow, and to overcome its 
temptation. 

"To him that overcometh will I give to eat 
of the fruits of the tree of life." 

The tree in the midst of the Paradise of God 
is eternal life — here and now. Its fruits are 
those attributes of spirit which make for the 
joy and harmony of living, its success, its health 
and its happiness. 

Now, one of the sweetest fruits upon the 
"tree of life" — the greatest health giver and 
happiness maker, is good temper. It is the 



GOOD TEMPER 65 

sweetener of life, and a great overcoming 
power, for it is an ingredient of that "greatest 
thing in the world" — Love. 

With the most heartfelt desire, we sometimes 
find it a difficult task to keep that sweetness and 
serenity of temper which we so earnestly strive 
for. 

In the course of a day we come into contact 
with so many opposing personalities, so many 
things are said and done that do not fit in 
with our mood, we are irritated and, finally, 
angered; lose our self-control, and in bitter 
resentment, say and do those things which so 
often, on sober reflection, we keenly regret, and 
would gladly make amends for afterwards. 

The mastery of self, or self-control, is the 
upward grade of poise and power. It is wis- 
dom and strength- — lose it, and self-respect is 
lost, and with the loss of self-respect, begins the 
downward grade. Give way to anger to-day, 
it is easy to-morrow — we yield to temptation 
to-day- — we become its victim, and yield with 
but little resistance to-morrow. 



66 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

The angry thought creates its own atmos- 
phere, the angry emotion yielded to and ex- 
pressed in word and action, bears grievous re- 
sult, and becomes a very vital factor in loss of 
health and happiness — for we are well aware 
that it is the mental attitude, the imagery with 
which we fill the subconscious mind, that ma- 
terializes in manifestation of joy or sorrow. 

"As a man thinketh in his heart, so is 
he." We reflect that which we constantly 
contemplate. 

Good temper is a characteristic of strength — 
it is temper controlled and directed, and is one 
of the foundation stones of a noble, useful life. 

Drummond defined ill temper as the 'Vice 
of the virtuous," and this is only too true, for 
very often it is the only blot upon an otherwise 
noble character. 

In the past w r e have never seriously con- 
sidered ill temper as a vice, but rather as a 
weakness, an infirmity of disposition, but it has 
scarcely affected our estimate of a man's useful- 
ness, or his character. 



GOOD TEMPER 67 

Yet I think we may venture to assert that 
it is more largely responsible for the world's 
misery, and has done more to mar the joy, and 
destroy the peace of men and women indi- 
vidually and collectively, more to antagonize, 
and we might say, unchristianize society, than 
many a vice more frowned upon. 

The peace of communities has been broken 
up, friendships destroyed, love trampled under 
foot, the most sacred relationships embittered 
by the blighting influence of a bad temper. 

Many a home, otherwise the abode of happy 
love, has been stripped of its joys, and rendered 
wretched. Many a cry has gone up from the 
heart of a child, and many a smile has been 
quenched by its sheer misery producing quality. 

The ingredients of ill temper are jealousy, 
envy, pride, selfishness, and a host of unlovely 
things, which do not belong to the Real of us, 
and must be barred entrance to our conscious- 
ness, lest we sin against love, for sin against 
love is sin against God, for love is the very 
essence and spirit of God — It is Cod. 



68 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

Keep the high watch over your own spirit, 
do not let your soul rise up in bitterness, over 
what you consider the wrongs and injustices of 
the world, — do not let the personality of an- 
other mar the joy and sweetness of your days, 
or take from you your heritage of freedom, as a 
child of the living God. 

Bitterness and anger harden the heart, they 
kill the gentler emotions. The sweetest and 
tenderest instincts of your nature are stifle J, 
and finally the lid of your heart grows rusty 
on its hinges, and no longer opens to the call of 
love and compassion. 

"We govern the unspoken word. The 
spoken word governs us." The spoken word 
cannot be recalled, it goes forth with creative 
power. The word either of love or hate im- 
mediately assumes control. The word of anger 
goes forth, and behold, it becomes our master, 
and we in turn become its slave. It returns 
to us with unexpected force and power to hurt. 

It is well known that anger produces a chemi- 
cal disturbance of the blood, that acts as a 



GOOD TEMPER 69 

poison. A violent paroxysm of rage has been 
known to produce apoplexy. Extreme anger 
causes much physical pain and distress, varied 
in form and magnitude. 

I have read somewhere, that a celebrated 
horse trainer said that an angry word would 
sometimes raise the pulse of a horse ten beats a 
minute. Reflect, then, how much more sensi- 
tive the nerves of human beings. 

As the ingredients of bad temper are a host 
of unlovely things, so are the ingredients of 
good temper a host of lovely things, revealing 
the Christ — radiating the sunshine and joy of 
life — demonstrating the perfection of being, in 
the beautiful fruits of the spirit — love, peace, 
good will to man — the attributes that bless 
humanity and overcome the inharmony and dis- 
cord of the world. 

"Let not the sun go down upon your wrath," 
lest it rob your sleep of its peace and refresh- 
ment, and take from your morrow its sunshine 
and joy. We cannot be angry without its 
flaming heat scorching our own souls. We 



70 FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT 

cannot hurt our brother without its swift re- 
bound of hurt to ourselves, for are we not all 
members one of another, is not the Christ in me, 
the same Christ in you? 

Therefore, "Let us love one another," for- 
bearing, with heavenly compassion to add "one 
jot, one tittle" to the wounds of the world — for 
we are all members of one Spiritual Body — up- 
held by the one power — sustained by the same 
Breath of Immortal Life. 

Make of your mind a nest of pleasant 
thoughts, hedge them round with love, encom- 
pass them with peace, be true to the Christ 
within you, loving God, doing unto others as 
you would be done by, serving humanity with 
unfaltering patience; — 

Looking unto Him, who is the Author and 
Finisher of our Faith. 

Looking unto Him — we overcome the sins 
of the world, and are "given to eat of the tree 
of life," which is in the midst of the Paradise 
of God. 



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